Rugby
Ronan O'Gara is set for a lively homecoming after Munster were grouped with Racing 92 in yesterday's European Champions Cup draw.
Considering the season just past, when all three Irish provinces failed to reach the knockout stages, bookmaker odds already place Leinster, Ulster and Connacht as third favourites in their respective pools.
O’Gara is skills coach with Top 14 champions Racing, and they join Munster, Leicester Tigers and Glasgow in a tough looking pool.
Pro12 champions Connacht got a draw their top seeding merited, grouped alongside Wasps, Toulouse and Zebre. While Leinster face Montpellier, Northampton Saints and Castres Olympique.
Ulster appear to have the worst draw in pool five with two French clubs, Clermont and Madigan’s Bordeaux-Bégles, along with the impressive Exeter Chiefs.
Soccer
Today Poland and Portugal face off in Euro 2016's first quarter-final. Ahead of the 8pm kick-off Emmet Malone sees Poland's Jakub Blaszczykowski as a key man. "Poland supporters have always been well disposed to a player who endured the terrible trauma aged 10 of his father stabbing his mother to death, a crime he is said to have witnessed."
Chelsea have acted with ruthless efficiency to secure the Belgium forward, Michy Batshuayi, from Marseille in a deal worth an initial €40m - hijacking Crystal Palace's agreed deal with the French club.
GAA
Meanwhile Galway attacker Conor Cooney has won his red card appeal from the county's Leinster semi-final against Offaly earlier this month. He is now cleared to play in Sunday's decider against Galway.
Tennis
Johnny Watterson was at Centre Court in Wimbledon yesterday watching Roger Federer put Britain's 772nd ranked Marcus Willis to the sword in their second round encounter. "Sure, it was a Wimbledon cliché but it was raucous and pure soap, more so with the roof closed. But very rarely do these matches fall into the lap of the home crowd."
Women In Sport
In her column this morning Sonia O'Sullivan is urging the Irish athletes to channel a little of the Iceland spirit ahead of the Rio Olympics. "The passion exemplified by the Iceland team is something all athletes hope to experience at least once in their lifetime."
What to watch out for
Day one of the Paris Open de France - Rory McIlroy, Padraig Harrington and Paul Dunne are among six Irish in action.
Sky Sports 4, 9.30am-12.30pm, 2.30pm-5.30pm
It's also day one of the Akron WGC - Bridgestone Invitational - with Shane Lowry looking to defend his title.
Sky Sports 4, 6.30pm-11.30pm
The action in Wimbledon continues today with Andy Murray's second round match against China's Tapei's Yen-Hsun Lu the main event.
BBC 2, 11.30am-7.30pm, 9.30pm-10.30pm
BBC 1, 1.45pm-6pm
While over in France, Portugal and Poland is underway at 8pm at the Stade Vélodrome.
TV3 from 7pm
There's also Europa League qualifiers tonight - with the All-Ireland clash of Cork City and Linfield at Windsor Park (7.45pm). While Shamrock Rovers face RoPS Rovaniemi in Tallaght at 8pm.
